Lady Lions scratch Lady Kats; boys fall


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Lady Lions scratch Lady Kats; boys fall

By CLAUDE VINSON
Sports Editor

The H.W. Byers Lady Lions hit the floor showing their usual form on Friday the 13th against Independence.

Eventually the night would prove to be pretty unlucky for the Lady Wildcats (or the Lady Kats as they like to call themselves).

At first the Lady Kats were trying to keep pace but the Lady Lions just smoothly went to an 11-2 lead. But, this was a “cat fight” and Independence soon picked up its pace. The visitors had made a comeback and trailed by three (12-9) at the end of the quarter.

Byers probably sensed that the score was a little too close for comfort so they changed it. With a drive sustained by Precious Rogers and Madison McCreless, they soon had an 11-point lead. The Lady Kats went to the locker room nine behind at 35-26.

Independence tried another comeback in the third but it didn’t work. Byers maintained a nine-point lead in the frame. With just about five seconds left, Abria Gulledge launched a trey attempt which missed, however, McCreless caught it in mid-air and sent it straight to the hoop from the left corner. It netted cleanly but the official ruled no points, saying that the ball had not left the player’s hands. That brought the ire of the Lions’ faithful. Byers was ahead 45-33 at the end of three.

The Lady Lions, who improved to 14-4 on the season, opened the flood gates after that and out-pointed their opponents 16-9 the rest of the way. The final was 61-42.

A. Gulledge and McCreless led Byers with 11 points each. Kyra Gulledge scored 10 and snatched 12 rebounds. Justice Martin and Rogers had 10 and eight points, respectively.

Lions drop nightcap

Both squads started off playing above the rim and in high gear.

The boys game between Byers and Independence had been tied no less than six times and the lead had changed as many times in the first period. In their zeal, the Lions had given the Wildcats 13 charitable opportunities and Independence had made eight of them, which is why they were ahead by four points. The Wildcats had only been called for one infraction in the entire period. The score was 17-13.

Play settled a little in the second quarter and the score stayed close but without many ties. The Lions were within three until Hunter Lowery struck from trey land and upped it to six (34-28) at the break.

Early in the third, Byers erased the deficit and took the lead. But Neiko Simmons was doing a lot of damage. He was becoming a dynamo. He was single-handedly keeping the Wildcats out front. The game was well within the Lions’ reach throughout the second half. They were four back at 44-39 after three.

The Wildcats had been clawing throughout the fourth quarter, but the Lions began to roar. They tied it at 61 but Simmons was still running rampant. He wasn’t giving out many assists but he was putting it in the nylon from all angles, including the line. The Lions, whose record dropped to 8-7, missed some very crucial lay-ups in concession and ultimately were sunk by the mistakes. The Wildcats won 69-63.

Anthony Mabon was the hit man for the Lions , scoring 25. Jarvis Jones had nine and Marquis Moore eight.

Schedule

Byers teams hosted Myrtle Tuesday. They go to Coldwater Friday. Both are Region 2-1A opponents.

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